In 1974 a 26 year old Office Cleaning Manager saved Princess Anne
August 25, 2006 Posted by Richard in : News , add a commentOfficeCleaningManager Saves Anne
He’s a larger-than-life London “geezer” but Ron Russell often gets forgotten in the story of a dramatic attempt to kidnap a member of the royal family.
This week the 6ft 4in former boxer appeared in a television drama documentary on how he helped save the life of the Princess Royal 32 years ago.
The have-a-go hero tackled a crazed gunman, who shot four people as he tried to drag the princess out of a royal car in the Mall on March 21 1974.
Attacker Ian Ball was locked up for life, after Mr Russell landed a punch on him, enabling police to overpower the assailant who planned to ask the Queen for a £3m ransom in used fivers.
It is a moment of bravery that earned the staunch royalist the top peacetime gallantry award, the George Medal, and a moment of fame which has followed the 58-year-old ever since, as he ran pubs and a roofing business in Norfolk.
The East Ender, now living in East Runton near Cromer, appeared in Monday’s ITV programme To Kidnap a Princess, both as himself recalling the incident, and his role in the drama played by an actor.
The other people involved in the incident were security men, police and a journalist who were doing their jobs - but Mr Russell says he was just a passer-by with no time for “bullies and liberty-takers.”
Then 26, he was heading home after a day’s work as an office cleaning manager, when he saw a car swerve past the princess’s limousine.
“I pulled over and heard a lot of banging and smashing which I thought was the general rumpus. But then Ball shot a policeman, and I thought ‘that’s a liberty, he needs sorting’.”
The former heavyweight boxer went to punch Ball but only hit the back of his head.
“He turned round and fired at me. It missed by millimetres and hit a taxi windscreen.”
After trying to help the shot policeman he returned to the car, where Ball was trying to drag Anne from the car and Capt Mark Phillips’s grasp, like a “tug of war”, said Mr Russell.
“Ball had a gun at her head. I lent in to the car and said ‘come this way Anne, you’ll be safe.’ I pulled her out and held her in front of me. Ball got behind me, and I thought ‘if he shoots me in the back it won’t hurt as much’
“I turned and we were face to face. He was pointing a gun at me. I hit him fair and square on the chin. He went down and police were everywhere,” recalled Mr Russell.
When he received his medal the Queen told Mr Russell “the medal is from the Queen of England, the thank you is from Anne’s mother.”
Office Cleaning London
August 16, 2006 Posted by Richard in : Cleaning Advice , add a comment
10 facts about Office Cleaning in London
- Making the right decision
- Every business in London’s City and West End region is very different by means of the type of building and the materials which compose it, and also by their interior layout and design. Taking time to speak to companies in person about what you as a business need from a cleaning company should give you an idea if you are going to be a client who is cared for or a number in their books.
- Some cleaning companies may push towards their own availability when discussing times and days for their cleaners to visit your business. Make sure that when you decide which company you trust to carry out your Office Cleaning they can also accomodate to your business’ specific needs when it comes to cleaning hours.
- “I have a large corporate office, I need a large corporate cleaning firm”. This statement is far from the truth, if you are among the largest customers of a SME (small medium enterprise) cleaning company you should notice a much more personal and caring approach towards your business.
- Be sure to challenge office cleaning sales people on the vetting and training processes that they employ. Nearly half of the cleaning staff in London are illegal immigrants and security for your business and your staff should always remain a priority.
- Changing Cleaning Companies - Too many people have the though in their minds that making a change in cleaning company will cause so much fuss in the office that it may have counter productive effects on their staff during change over. It is no different to the permanent fixture staff leaving at 17:30 and coming back the next morning to start work again. If you are not happy with your service - change it!
- Bespoke cleaning options - Bearing in mind that a recent survey shows 60 percent of office staff have had a cold in the last 3 months it is important that as a business owner you recognise the causes and take action to reduct the sickness rate in your office. Believe it or not this is thought to be caused by germs both in keyboards and on computer screens rather than just by the air conditioning units. Customising cleaning services is not just what type of floor you have and the time of day most convenient to have the cleaners in but also the things you see as being important that may otherwise be left out of a contract. If not make sure your staff clean their own every couple of months by providing the correct computer cleaning materials.
- Janitorial Supplies - Paying a seperate company to deliver your towels and soaps? why not club togother with your cleaning company to drive down the cost of supplies.
- Too many seperate contracts? - Many cleaning service providers will only concentrate on their core work of cleaning. They may not include the re-supply of materials for washrooms or the disposal of general/sanitary waste. Finding a company who can shoulder this responsibility can free up some valuable time in house.
- Do you often see supervisors scrutinising the work of your cleaners? - If the answer to this is no then you should strongly consider looking for an alternative service provider who takes pride in quality. If the cleaners themselves know their work will not be checked by their own bosses, what would drive them to work to the highest possible standard.
- Here is fact No.10 Total Clean Services Ltd offer all of the above to any size business in central London and the West End regions. We can offer this advice to all business owners because we are confident we can meet the above expectations based on our existing client base and their ever increasing confidence in our ability to provide a first class service. Please contact us for references.
Boy George Starts Community Service Cleaning Streets
Posted by Richard in : News , 1 comment so farBoy George starts street cleaning sentence
Boy George has started a five day street cleaning community service sentence for falsely reporting a crime and wasting police time.
The singer had joked “I’ve always been a scrubber” and took to the New York streets in relatively high spirits.
But, as he faced hoards of reporters in his fluorescent jacket and gloves, the 45 year old quickly lost his temper. “This is supposed to be community service,” barked the star, real name Paul O’Dowd. “You’re just making it a nightmare, which just means it’s for the media and not for me.”
He denied accusations he was annoyed with the menial work, commenting: “My mum was a cleaner, my dad was a builder, know what I mean?”
He was ordered to complete the service after he called police to his house in the city last October and was then convicted of wasting police time earlier this year as well.
A New York departmental spokesman said he would serve a ‘proper sentence’. “A lot of tourists means a lot of litter,” he commented. “This is the epitome of community service. It’s not like he’s going to be working in an air conditioned office.”
For office cleaning services and Janitorial Supplies call Total Clean Services Ltd
Leaders Get Out To Inspect Street Cleaning in Ealing
August 11, 2006 Posted by Richard in : News , add a commentTHE new leadership of Ealing Council is continuing its shake-up of services by making personal checks on street cleaning teams.
Leader Councillor Jason Stacey vowed to clean up the borough in his Tory party manifesto pledge.
Now he has promised to personally inspect Ealing streets to ensure they are being kept clean to the right standard and make sure workers for cleaning contractors ECT are up to scratch.
He said: “It is no use sitting in the Town Hall commenting on whether streets are clean or not. The only effective way of judging this is getting out and about yourself and seeing it with your own eyes. This is equally true for politicians as well as senior council officers and managers at ECT.”
The spot checks will last around two hours and be held around every ten days between now and Christmas.
In February council watchdog, the Audit Commission, revealed Ealing had the fourth dirtiest, most heavily littered streets in all of London’s 33 boroughs.
Performance indicators showed 35 per cent of Ealing’s streets and open spaces were “significantly or heavily littered”.
Under the new scheme, called Reality Checks, Cllr Stacey will take staff from the council and ECT with him, so if any problems are found they can be “dealt with immediately”.
He said: “I shall be ensuring that all areas of the borough are covered. It is important that each location of the spot check is announced at the last moment so when we turn up we can see the areas as they really are. Where we find standards not up to scratch we will be insisting on immediate action.”
Results of Britain Clean Streets awards on this blog in March 2007
For Office Cleaning London please visit Total Clean
Paul McCartney strop over cleaning supplies
August 7, 2006 Posted by Administrator in : News , add a commentAn interesting news item caught our attention this weekend from the Mail on Sunday it looks like Paul McCartney.
“Solicitors for the former Beatle fired off the formal letter after Heather’s nanny took the half-used bottles from his Peasmarsh estate to clean the former model’s new office 15 minutes away.”
“Last night, a source said: “It has really got nasty. This is war … Heather and Paul can’t stand each other any more and they will fight for everything.”
Of course Total clean services can provide a much easier way to get hold of cleaning supplies. As well as our range of Office Cleaning sevices.
I Destroyed My House While Cleaning
August 2, 2006 Posted by Richard in : News , add a commentCleaning destroyed my house
Tuesday, August 1, 2006
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It is billed as the ultimate cleaning product – capable of wiping out even the most stubborn stains.
But even trusty Cillit Bang could not get the glue off 75-year-old Ronald Cox’s kitchen floor tiles. So in desperation Mr Cox decided to use petrol instead – and promptly blew up his house.
The boiler pilot light in his living room ignited the fumes despite the pensioner having used just an eggcup full of the highly flammable liquid.
”Nobody should ever try to use petrol as a cleaner”
And with a bang louder than the cleaning product’s colour scheme an explosion ripped through his semi-detached house in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire.
The blast blew out the front bay window, lifted up part of the kitchen ceiling and caused structural damage to an inside wall.
But Mr Cox, who is partly deaf and suffers from angina, had no idea what had happened until a neighbour came to see if he was all right.
Dave Micheson, who lives a few doors away, found Mr Cox standing shocked but unhurt in the kitchen.
He said: ‘I couldn’t believe it when he was just standing there.’ Mr Cox said his local hardware store recommended Cillit Bang and when it did not have the desired effect, he tried petrol. ‘I only had a cupful,’ he protested.
Humberside Fire and Rescue Service said: ‘There are many products available which can do such jobs perfectly – nobody should ever try to use petrol as a cleaner.
Britain Clean Streets Champion
August 1, 2006 Posted by Richard in : News , add a commentOne Step Closer to Finding a Clean Champion
The search for the most spotless area in the UK has now entered its final stages with today’s announcement of the Clean Britain Awards finalists.
Ten cities, five districts and two boroughs have been judged the best examples of clean and tidy UK destinations from a competitive list of entrants to the British Cleaning Councils competition.
They must now battle it out to become the clean champion, which is guaranteed to give their profile and reputation a brightening lift.
Judith West, Chairman of the BCC (British Cleaning Council) said: “In the past, becoming a finalist has launched many UK cities into the spotlight, giving their profile a huge boost and gaining them a reputation of a tidy destination.”
In the coming months a panel of judges will make visits to each of the finalist areas. Residents are being encouraged to have some pride in their hometown or city, by using a bin and keeping the streets free from litter, filth and grime.
The finale will take place on 13th March 2007 at the Cleaning Show, NEC, Birmingham.
Judith West added: “Being a finalist is great news for these areas, but they must not rest on their laurels. On the judging visits no stone will be left unturned in the quest to find the cleanest place in Britain. It is down to the public to make sure they use a bin and support the bid to keep the area in a clean and tidy state.”
* CLEAN BRITAIN AWARDS’ FINALISTS
| City | Borough | District |
| Birmingham | Ipswich | Braintree |
| Cardiff | Lewisham | Chester |
| Coventry | Durham | |
| Edinburgh | Oadby & Wigston | |
| Leeds | Mendip | |
| Newcastle | ||
| City of London | ||
| Truro | ||
| Westminster | ||
| York
For further information please call 01942 612616 or email: press@britishcleaningcouncil.org |